Unexpected strengths
by butterflygirl
Summary: Wufei meets a girl who appears, on the surface, to be a perfect example of a weak onna. How do his opinions change?
1. Default Chapter

I don't own Gundam Wing. I'm just borrowing the characters for a while. Some are my own invention.  
  
  
  
  
Sitting in a bar, Wufei was practically invisible in the crowds of Beijing. Returning to the country of his ancestors had been something he felt he had to do- to see his roots. The bright lights on every corner and the sheer number of people in the streets had exceeded his expectations, and he longed for some peace and quiet. But he wouldn't get it here.   
Picking up his coat and walking outside, he watched for a moment as a small boy ran past and into the road. Seconds later, he was sprawled on the concrete, having been hit by the side of a truck. The driver didn't wait to see if he was okay, but instead drove off and left him lying there. A girl around Wufei's age ran over to him and began to cry.   
"Do you need me to call an ambulance?"  
Suki looked up. A tall guy was looking at her questioningly.  
"Yes, please," she said calmly, looking straight back, then turned to look at her little brother again, and tried not to sob.  
Wufei jogged over to a telephone box and dialled the emergency services. When he'd finished, he went back and they were still there. Someone was diverting the traffic around the accident, and the girl was holding the boy's hand, still weeping.   
How weak she is, Wufei thought. Crying like a baby in public. But he stayed there until the ambulance arrived, and watched her leave.  
^^^  
"Suki?"  
Looking up, Suki saw her brother open his eyes to look at her.   
"What happened, Suki?"  
"You ran into the road, you baka, and got hit by a truck," she told him, not really meaning the insult but angry all the same. "You could have been killed! Then what would I have done?"  
Suki had raised Mika since she was 15 when their mother had died. They'd never really remembered their father, and she was glad of it. Her mother had always told her that her father was a no good chauvinistic pig.  
"I'm sorry, Suki," Mika told her with a wobble in his voice. "I didn't mean to, I swear." He was only 10, and she was 18 this year. Suki didn't know how she was going to get the money to pay for his treatment. They lived on government support, with most of it going towards her university fund. She hoped she could get the Chinese Health Service on this one, or she'd never go to University, and they'd be living on the streets when she became 20 and the benefits stopped. But she didn't dare tell Mika her worries- he was distraught enough as it was.  
"It's alright, Mika. It'll be fine. I'm not mad."  
The little boy smiled and went back to sleep. Suki left for the library, to go back to studying.  
^^^  
"Oh! I'm sorry!" Suki cried as she bumped into someone, they and her both dropping their textbooks. She helped them pick their books up, and then saw who it was.  
"You? Oh, I didn't get a chance to thank you for last night- so thanks. My name's Suki."  
Wufei groaned internally. He had to bump into that onna again. He found himself being stared at, and remembered to reply.  
"My name is Wufei."  
Suki smiled. "That was my grandfather's name."  
Wufei stumbled slightly over someone's book bag, and Suki grabbed his arm to steady him.  
"You alright?"  
"I'm fine, Woman," he growled, adding under his breath, "stupid onna."  
Suki heard that and drew in her breath. "You chauvinistic pig! I was only trying to help! I have a name!"  
Wufei glared back and snatched his arm from her grasp. "Leave me alone. All I did was ring an ambulance."  
He stalked off, not needing to look back to know about the angry expression on Suki's face.  
^^^  
"That Wufei…and I thought he was a decent guy. What a pig-headed, macho baka!"  
Pacing around Mika's hospital room, she scowled fiercely, remembering which side of the family that grandfather of hers had been on. Her father's. Maybe the name carried along some kind of curse that turned the bearer into someone like that.  
"Wasn't Wufei the name of one of those pilots?" Mika asked her, his dark eyes curious. "The Gundam Pilots."  
"So what?" Suki turned again, and remembered. Pilot 05- Wufei Chang- was Chinese. She slapped her forehead, and leant against the wall.  
"What is it, Suki?"  
"I think that was him, Mika."  
The little boy's eyes widened and filled with excitement. "You met a Gundam pilot? That's so cool!"  
Suki stood slowly, and brushed down her jeans with one hand. "He's a waste of time, Mika. Just like father."  
Mika had never quite believed their mother about how useless their father was. He'd thought of hundreds of 'good' reasons for him to have left, and fantasised about meeting him, and going on adventures together.   
"Maybe he and father are related," he suggested eagerly. "Maybe he's our half-brother!"  
"Don't make me sick." Suki made a face and sat on the edge of the bed. "Mika, we're better off forgetting about that loser. Come on. We'll sign out and go home."  
With his leg in plaster, Mika hobbled along behind his sister where they signed out, to the nurses' discomfort. They couldn't afford for Mika to stay there too long. It would cost far too much.  
She 'borrowed' a wheelchair on the way out, and promised herself to take it back after they got home. Wheeling it along the crowded streets was easier than she had thought- people got out of the way for invalids. It was along one of the many small back ways that trouble came- again. From the shadows came a gang of thugs. She knew them too well. She'd gone out with the leader for a month or two, and had been the one to break it off. He hadn't been too happy about that.  
"Hey there, Suki," Zedd drawled. "Going home?"  
"Get out of my way, Zedd." He'd invented that nickname to try and make himself sound hard. It sounded stupid.  
"You that eager to leave, Babe?" he asked, leering at her.  
"Leave me alone."  
The circle of guys started to close in. They'd been waiting for a chance to beat her up since she'd broken up with Zedd, and now they had it. They made a formidable pack, and some had iron fist spikes. Pushing Mika behind her, she went into a fighting stance. She hadn't been trained, but she saw it on television sometimes. It was better than nothing, and it made them slightly more wary of her. It gave the impression she knew what she was doing. "Well, they certainly do," she thought to herself, a sweat breaking out on her forehead.  
There, on the left. A punk launched himself in her direction, punching with his left and his right simultaneously. The neon light glinted from his iron-shod knuckles. Suki tried to dodge but was caught hard in the stomach and fell backwards, winded, gasping for breath. Grinning maliciously, they walked closer, surrounding her as she tried to stand. Mika stayed where he was, frozen, then suddenly began to yell shrilly for help. The gang ignored him. No one came far enough back here into the network of sprawling alleyways to hear him. Even if they did, no one wanted to get into unnecessary trouble. Especially with a 'hard' gang like theirs.  
They were wrong. From the darkness, a lithe body launched itself out, lashing out quicker than Suki's eyes could follow in the motions of a trained fighter. He took them all on at once, kicking and punching in a volley of smooth attacks and knocking them swiftly into submission. When he had neatly finished off the last thug, and began to dust off his clothes, she saw who it was. Wufei.  
"Oh, man…" she thought to herself. "How badly will he gloat over this?" But she was still glad to see him. After all, he had just saved her from a serious beating.  
Zedd and his remaining thugs ran off, hurling obscenities about what he would do to her 'next time'. Suki stood up, slowly, wincing as she shifted her bruises.  
Wufei turned around, but his concerned expression melted as he saw who he had just saved, then ran off into the night. He didn't want thanking. It was just justice, and he had meted it out swiftly and with little effort. So it was that girl again. So he'd been walking near the hospital. So what?  
^^^  
When they finally got home, Suki tucked a drained Mika in, then collapsed on her own bed, exhausted. She'd run most of the way home, and had tired herself out completely. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow, still fully clothed.  
^^^  
Morning came, and Suki winced as she saw the grotesque bruises on her stomach in the mirror. An ugly blossom of black, blue and yellow, with a centre of reddish brown where a scab was forming. It made a horrible mark from left to right. Pulling on a loose shirt, so as not to pressure her wounding, she pulled her hair into a tight ponytail and fastened it, gasping slightly in pain as the skin was pulled upwards by her arms, stretching her injury.   
Walking down the small corridor, she saw Mika eating his breakfast and playing with the cheap plastic dinosaur he'd found in the cereal box.   
"Will you be okay here on your own today?" his cast made it too hard for her to get him to school. She'd take him in tomorrow, though. He needed his education.   
"Sure, 'sis. I can take care of myself."  
"Yeah, like you took care of yourself with that truck."  
"I'm sorry!" He squeaked guiltily once more.  
Suki grimaced, and picked up her bag. Another long day at school. What joy. Another day of bad school lunches and boring lessons. With the painful bruise to cope with too.   
Locking the door behind her, she went down the stairs and walked the streets again, on the way to what she liked to call 'Hell's own High School'. And to top it off, her wounded stomach had begun to ache.  
^^^  
Mika sat looking out of the window at the traffic most of the day. Last night had been the first time he'd really seen that amazing pilot guy. He'd liked him. There was something oddly comforting about him, the way he'd beaten up those guys for Suki. He wondered if Wufei liked her, and giggled. Suki fancied him. Mika could tell. She'd never admit it, of course…but something about the way she kept complaining about him made Mika want to laugh.  
Gazing down at the street, he watched the people come and go. So many people passed by everyday, and none of them knew he was watching them. The idea delighted him. He had a sudden thought. He opened the window, and got a pot of white yoghurt from the fridge, then spent the next half-hour happily flicking it onto people from above, then ducking inside so they thought it was an incontinent bird.  
A splat landed on Wufei's perfect hair. He looked up quickly and saw someone disappearing into the building. Hmm. He wiped it off with slight annoyance and walked on.  
^^^  
Mika suddenly realised who it was he'd just flicked yoghurt onto, and fell about laughing, even though he felt a little guilty. But it had been worth it for the look on those unsuspecting people's faces.  
^^^  
When Suki came home, she found Mika rolling around on the floor with an empty pot of yoghurt and a carefully licked spoon. Frowning, she listened to his account but her stony countenance soon cracked and she laughed like crazy herself.   
But then she swiftly got up, and went to get ready. Her friends and her were going to a club, and she wanted to look dazzling. Pulling on her favourite dress, she looked into the mirror and licked her finger, carefully straightening one eyebrow. Mika came and watched from the doorway, occasionally helping her choose colours. Her dark blue dress went well with her black hair, and the light eyeshadow opened her eyes, making them seem bigger and darker than they had before. She just hoped that her injuries wouldn't make dancing difficult.  
A loud honking came from outside, and she peered from the window to see her friend Mieke waiting in her car. Waving, she pulled on her black strappy shoes and ran down the stairs, piling into the car with the others, laughing. Mika followed her with his eyes until she vanished around a corner, and went to watch TV.  
^^^  
He'd been looking at that girl for over an hour, sitting at the bar with his drink. Her silky midnight hair swayed seductively by her slender waist as she danced with catlike grace. She seemed so pretty in her smooth twilight-blue dress. Maybe pretty was the wrong word. She was beautiful. Yes, beautiful, maybe even glamorous with her black shoes and silk smooth legs. There was a sense of mystery about her as well. Something he couldn't quite place. Wufei's eyes had been magnetically drawn to her since she'd walked in, laughing prettily, but he hadn't yet seen her made-up face up close. He made up his mind to ask her to dance. After all, there was no reason that he couldn't enjoy himself on holiday.  
He moved powerfully onto the dance floor, turning heads as he strode up to her. He was every inch the mysterious, handsome, stranger. He stopped behind her and cautiously tapped her on the shoulder as she turned around. Then he realised with a start who it was. That girl…Suki, wasn't it?  
Suki turned to see Wufei standing behind her, obviously surprised to see her. A flicker of a smile began it's way over her shining lips, when someone flung out their arm in laughter and knocked him from behind in his moment of surprise. He fell over clumsily, knocking her down, and landing on top of her.  
Wufei hurriedly pushed himself up with his arms, and looked at her again, embarrassed. But before he could stop himself, he began to fall dreamily into those wonderful obsidian eyes. The music seemed to fade around him. He felt that he could see whole shimmering galaxies, suns and moons and stars, glimmering enchantingly in their depths. He shook his head to rid himself of this strange trance he had fallen into and the rhythmic dance beat turned up the volume once more. He hurriedly stood up, shyly offering her a strong hand.  
Suki was mesmerised. How had she ever thought he was chauvinistic? His beautiful eyes…realising that he was holding out his hand to help her up, she took it and found herself held securely in a tight grip, and hauled to her feet gently. In the crowded room she found herself standing right up against him, then blushed at the intimacy and stepped away a little. His eyes, though…they had been so deep and amazing. She looked up again and was caught once more, by the mysterious comforting darkness of Wufei's eyes. She barely noticed as he took a small step closer, bringing them back together. She couldn't tear her eyes away from his, any more than he was able to from hers. The air might have sizzled between them.   
Girl, get a hold of yourself! Her mind screamed. It's that stupid guy who wouldn't even say your name! But she ignored it. She was in love.   
Looking down at her, Wufei forgot about her weakness. He couldn't guess why, but he couldn't turn and leave. Not now. He bent down slightly, almost as if it were an unconscious reaction, and kissed her softly without a word.  
Bright fireworks exploded before Suki's startled eyes. He was kissing her! She found herself kissing him back, before she'd even thought about it. Hot seductive sweetness ran from his lips to hers, and she couldn't ignore it if she's wanted to. She relaxed into the kiss with a slight sigh. She blissfully closed her eyes.   
Wufei suddenly found control of himself again, and realised what he was doing. Pulling away with a jolt, he saw the confusion on her face and spun around, leaving rapidly, one hand pressed to his forehead.  
Suki tried to go after him, but too many people, who had moved out of the gundam pilot's path, got in her way. She'd seen the widened look in his eyes. He was afraid of her. Of her. She smiled bitterly at the irony, before soft tears filled her dark eyes and slid silently down her delicately flushed cheeks.  
^^^  
Mika was still awake when Suki came home, watching a late night horror movie. Hearing the door slam, he climbed furtively into bed, pulling the covers over and closing his eyes. He watched through cautious slits as Suki came in, undressing as she went. She paused at the full-length mirror looking at the ugly mark across her belly before she started to shake with grief. She glanced once at Mika and then collapsed onto her bed, sobbing quietly, trying to be silent so as not to disturb him. She didn't want him to know she'd been crying, so he left her alone, and closed his eyes until he heard her grow still, and he let himself sleep.  
^^^  
Suki wandered shakily into the kitchen the next day, bleary eyed and tearstained. Mika said nothing, avoiding the questions she so obviously didn't want to be asked. She sat down and began to eat mechanically, swallowing her least favourite cereal without paying any attention to the over-sweet taste. Last night she had had a brief taste of heaven. But heaven was afraid of her. Why was Wufei afraid? He was so strong; he was a gundam pilot for goodness sake! But he was scared of her. Had she done something wrong? His eyes had kept coming back to her. They were so deep, and dark…like jet. But far more beautiful than any stone.   
She knew with a sinking heart that when she went to school she'd be pestered all about the strange guy she'd been seen with. Sighing, she picked up her bag and went out, Mika at her heels, on the way to his school.  
"Hey, is it ok if I sleep over at my best friend's house for the weekend?" said Mika.  
"Whatever," was the uncaring reply.  
He couldn't embarrass his sister further, just by being there. He knew his friend would oblige.   
^^^  
Suki managed to avoid questions until she got to her English class. Mieke was there, and smirked when she came in, patting the chair next to her. Rolling her eyes, Suki sat down next to her best friend and looked at her pointedly.  
"So? Who was that guy?" Mieke asked excitedly. "He left pretty quick, so I didn't get a good look. Is he cute?"  
"Mieke…" Suki complained, giving her friend her best puppy dog eyes.  
"Come on, you can tell me y'know."  
"His name's Wufei."  
"And?"  
"And I've bumped into him a couple of times."  
There was an expectant silence  
"That's it? That's all you're going to tell me?!"  
"Yes."  
"Oh, come on. Please? At least tell me why he left so quick."  
"I don't know." There was such a look of abject depression on her face that Mieke almost told her not to carry on. "I wish I knew."  
"So? Do you like him?"  
"Mieke, he's…amazing."  
"Woah, stop there love struck girl! You gotta find him, that's for sure!"  
Looking at her friend, Suki smiled, a weak, watery smile that made her classmate more determined. "Thanks, Mieke."  
^^^  
Wufei sat alone in his room. Why had he even bothered to go over to her? He didn't need anyone, especially not a weak onna like that. She had been so amazingly beautiful in his arms…and that kiss. He kept dwelling on it, unable to boot it from his mind. It invaded his meditation. Unable to concentrate, he had fallen over in his practice, something he hadn't done in a long time. He had to leave Earth. He couldn't risk seeing her again. It would be too damaging for his concentration and his mind. But he'd go on a walk now. Just in the local area. So what if school was just ending? He just wanted some fresh air. Yes.  
^^^  
He hadn't seen her on his walk. Damn! And he had walked twice up and down outside the school gates. Trying to persuade himself that this was a good thing, he sat down to make an attempt at meditation again. But soft seductive images of Suki kept creeping into his mind, pictures that obstinately refused to budge from his consciousness, making him completely loose his concentration. He got up with a sigh and went for a cold shower.  
^^^  
Suki had been so downcast all day that Mieke was beginning to think she really was in love with this mysterious guy.  
"Look, Suki, if he'll just leave you on the dance floor like that then he's not worth bothering about."  
Her concerned friend watched Suki closely, and saw in her eyes an 'are you sure?' look. Her friend's moping around was getting Mieke down as well.  
"Look." she said matter-of-factly "Why don't you come out with us again tonight. Dance. Pull some blokes. Forget loser man."  
Smiling weakly, Suki agreed slowly. Anything to try and remove his haunting image from her mind. She realised that she'd been looking around unconsciously for his handsome face in the crowd. And what's more she had thought it was him more than once. Tearing herself from the thronged streets, she concentrated on walking fast to pick up Mika.  
^^^  
Wufei didn't know what he was doing in this club again. It had been here that his problems had started. He was well on his way to getting drunk, trying to blot Suki from his mind. Her eyes, her body, her… NO! he was NOT going to think about that. Anyway, he couldn't possibly want someone so weak so much. It wasn't like she was beautiful, anyway…  
~ Liar. She's gorgeous and you know it. ~ His mind kept taunting him. He drowned out the incessant voice with the last of his fifth pint of beer. Muzzily he gazed at the bottom of the glass, remarking to himself the way it distorted everything. He shakily ordered another beer. "Funny" he thought to himself. "With every pint, the voices get louder."  
At that moment Suki walked in, concentrating on Mieke's back. She had a red strappy top on. Her brownish hair lay in shiny curls over it. She wouldn't let herself look around to see if he was here. No way. "I'll just see which barman is here tonight". Her eyes wandered, and she saw someone at the bar who made her breath come ragged. It was him, and he was... drinking himself stupid, by the look of things. She frowned.  
Mieke looked back and grabbed her arms, following her gaze. "That's him?"  
Suki nodded dumbly, not able to reply without the worry of babbling like an idiot.   
"Go for it, girl! Go give him a good kicking!"  
Propelled by a push from her friend, Suki walked cautiously forward, her long skirt swishing over her legs uncomfortably. It had never worried her before, now it clung to her. She realised she was sweating. There was no confidence in her as she made her slow way over to the bar.  
Wufei looked up groggily at the bluish figures coming towards him. Totally drunk now, he couldn't make out which one was real, never mind who it was.  
"Are you an angel?" he asked, in a stupid slurred way. It sounded more like a corny chat up line than the bemused compliment he meant it to be   
"Yeah, the angel of bloody mercy." Came a familiar voice, and Wufei found himself standing. Just.   
"Suki?"  
"Yeah, you bum. Why'd you leave me like that last night?" she found herself breaking down, for all her angry bravado. Sitting heavily on one of the barstools, the tears began to spill down her face again, reddening her cheeks slightly as they passed.  
Wufei felt ashamed somewhere under the six pints of alcohol that were sloshing about inside him, and tried to hug her. But, maybe luckily for him, his co-ordination was messed up, and he fell on his butt with a groan.  
"You're bloody drunk!" Suki cried, angrier even than before. "You're bloody f***king drunk!" she stood up, so full of disappointment and bitterness, she thought she would break down completely. "I bet you were drunk last night, too. I bet you were so pissed up you didn't know what the hell you were doing!"  
She flung the insult at him. "After all that, it was just me who felt the Earth move. How could I have been so blind!"  
Eyes widening, Wufei looked up at her again. Her anger and sorrow were sobering, and the pain in her eyes was easy to see. He stood up and tried to take her hands. She pulled them back, trembling. He looked into her beautiful red rimmed eyes instead and spoke earnestly.   
"I wasn't drunk," he told her quietly, suddenly sober. Even more softly, he added, "And you weren't the only one who felt something special." She could tell he meant it.  
She looked at him carefully, trying to understand this complicated person. She saw something she'd never expected in his eyes. His eyes… tearing herself away, she shook her head bitterly, and retorted,  
"There's no excuse for leaving me, then. Goodbye, Wufei." She said softly, her voice breaking slightly.   
She stormed off towards Mieke, struggling to keep her tears in, the flared sleeves of her dress being used to wipe her eyes clear. She had managed to change all of her sorrow into anger- something that was dangerous when it happened. She had done that before, when their father had left home. He had been having an affair, and Suki had gone to the detestable woman's house and beaten her black and blue... at the age of 8. She still remembered the horrible delight she had felt. This woman has taken my father away from us and now she'll pay. Something inside her had snapped then, and was in the process of doing it now. The resulting anger was more dangerous to her and the people around her than holding a metal rod in your bare fist on a rooftop during a lightning storm. An almost electric tension surrounded her.  
She smiled sweetly, almost over sweetly at some of Mieke's friends that she'd brought along, and began to dance with one of them. She didn't know his name, but he was a nice enough guy, and he had the sense to know that this was only a one-time thing. A slow song began, and she rested her head on his shoulder, moving slowly, her arms around his blue-shirted body. Almost too tight in her anger. She would show him!  
The song ended, and she pulled Mieke's friend into a vicious, spiteful kiss.  
The world stood still for Wufei. He stared at them in astonishment, then a deep green jealousy. She was kissing with someone else! She was actually kissing someone else! How could she hurt him so much? Now he knew the meaning of the word injustice. He tried desperately to reach her, with no plan in his head, except maybe to apologise or to scream at her. But he was stopped by the glares directed at him from her friends, and left once again, his heart dragging on the floor behind him, slightly drunk emotions in turmoil at the scene he'd just walked out of, where he'd made such a vile and hurtful mess of his life. What could he do?  



	2. Chapter 2

Suki cried herself to sleep again that night. Her anger had died and she felt ashamed at her spitefulness. Why couldn't she have been more forgiving? Then she could forget her pain. She dreamt of beautiful jet eyes, and the liquid fire of his kiss that made the spiteful snog with that other guy seem futile. And she hadn't even bothered to learn his name. She sobbed into her pillow.   
^^^  
Suki was awakened, maybe an hour after finally getting to sleep, when a weight pressed into the side of her bed. It couldn't be Mika- he was sleeping over at his best friend's house until Monday. Opening her midnight-gummed eyes slowly, blinking sleep away with her long mascara-d lashes, she saw someone she would never have expected to see.   
It had been easy for Wufei to pick the lock to the front door. He'd followed her home, in hope of a chance to apologise. He had rehearsed his apology over and over as he had hovered outside her door. Once he had almost turned away but he wasn't going to miss the chance to make up. He had stood by the door for maybe fifteen minutes, debating whether or not to wake her. She'd looked so peaceful, lying there with her lashes resting on her cheeks, that he could almost believe that she was the angel she had named herself. He had finally decided to sit down beside her, to see if she awoke.   
Suki sat up and stared for long moments, soft lips parted in question. It seemed to her that here was one of her dream images, come to haunt her. So she reached out to him, resting her hand on his thigh, to reassure herself that he was real. Her anger and disappointment melted away, like snow in sunshine as she found he was really there and…perfect. He drew his breath in sharply, looking at her hand, then pulled her gently towards him, and they kissed, his speech forgotten. Sometimes actions mean more than words.  
Pleasantly shocked, Suki froze for a moment then relaxed, enjoying his kiss. It was even better than last time, and she sighed as he caressed her lips with his tongue. She forgot that all she was wearing was a manky green vest top that was far too tight to wear outside and a pair of violently clashing purple hot pants.   
He smiled against her lips and they parted for a second. Wufei's breath came more raggedly, looking at her sitting there in her skimpy clothing. It was a hot night, and the breeze from the window played with her dark hair, pulling strands of it from the loose ponytail and letting it float prettily in the warm night air. Her cheeks were delicately flushed, and her moist red lips shone.   
He knew he had to go slowly, if he was to make it up to her. But his body refused, and he slid his hand down her back, touching her wherever she would let him, as he kissed her again.  
Mind racing, Suki moaned slightly and leaned against him, her hands stroking his neck, heart in her throat and with lips tingling for contact. Unable to stop himself, Wufei pressed her down gently onto the bed, and started to rid her of her ill-fitting clothes. She was compelled to return the favour, unbuttoning his pale shirt that shone golden in the candlelight, to reveal, strong, well-developed muscles, developed for practical use, rather than to satisfy any vain ego. He glistened faintly in the soft light she kept burning by her bedside.  
"Do you know what Suki means in Japanese?" he asked her quietly, whispering into her ear. "It means love."  
She smiled in ecstasy.  
^^^  
Looking down at the slumbering beauty in his arms, Wufei felt warm and content. Her soft tanned skin brushed his, and their light sweat mingled. Her hair smelt sweet, like apple, he noticed with a smile as she nuzzled closer. Long legs intertwined with his own, as close as she could get. Suki had willingly given herself to him. They had made love- and indeed, literally. He could feel it growing in his heart, spilling to fill his being with the warm glow that he felt for this girl.   
They had hardly spoken, but he was able to soothe her through her discomfort, until her body opened to his like a flower in bloom. He turned to look at her sleeping face again. Her mascara was smudged, but her tearstains had vanished. Hair brushed against his bare chest, warm, soft and wonderfully alive. Slowly, her eyes flickered open, lashes tickling his skin. She looked around for a moment, and then blissfully remembered who she was with. Smiling, she looked up at the handsome man she had fallen for, oh, so quickly. His musky scent overloaded her senses, but it was pleasant, and oh, so desirable. She buried her face in his shoulder, enjoying the embrace, breathing in his smell.  
"When does your brother get back?"  
She looked up at the quiet voice near her ear. His breath had tickled her skin, leaving a delicious trail of goosebumps up her arm.  
"Not until Monday."  
"Good." He grinned and moved to roll her onto her back once more. At that point her radio alarm switched itself on. Neither of them reached to turn it off.  
"One more ti-ime. We're gonna celebrate yeah,  
don't stop the dancing…"  
^^^  
He had stayed with her all through that wonderful weekend. But now she had to go back to school.  
"Stop it." He had caught her around the waist, and was pulling her back to kiss her neck. "I have to go to school." She pushed him away reluctantly.  
He looked at her questioningly and she laughed, kissing him on the nose. "I'll be back tonight. But Mika will be here too, so behave yourself." She scolded, smiling.  
He let her go and she grabbed her bag, walking out backwards, not wanting to go but knowing she had to. She had university to think of. She laughed at her newest predicament and started the walk to school.  
^^^  
"Suki? Suki? SUKI!" Mieke had been yelling for fully five minutes, running through the crowd to try and catch up with her friend. "SUKI!" she called again, grabbing her shoulder. Suki was finally awakened from her daydream, and looked around at her friend questioningly.  
"What is it?"  
"I've been shouting at you for ages, and I had to practically yell in your ear to get your attention!" Mieke told her, not paying attention to the look on her friend's face. "You've gotta be really depressed if you're that bombed out."  
Suki laughed, and Mieke looked back at her in astonishment. Right down to the tips of her long hair, Suki seemed to be glowing with love and happiness.  
"What you on, girl? Can I have some?"  
"No. None for you," Suki teased, tweaking her friend's nose. "None for Mieke."  
"Oh, come on girl, spill!"  
"Nope."  
"Tell."  
"No."  
"Please?"  
"No way." She half skipped away.  
Exasperated, Mieke tried another tactic. "Well, I'm glad you're over that Wufei guy."  
Suki laughed louder, at the joke her friend had unknowingly uttered, turning heads nearby with the gaiety of the sound.   
"What?"  
Suki couldn't speak, she was laughing so hard. The happiness she'd felt since Friday night was spilling from her now, but she wasn't running out of it. In fact the more she laughed the more she was filled up with love. All that was happening was that she was sharing it with her puzzled friend.   
"What?! Tell me!"  
"No."  
Mieke couldn't make Suki tell her all the way to school, and quieted halfway there. If she knew her friend, she'd spill soon enough. Suki was never very good at keeping things secret from Mieke. After all, her best friend had tactics that had never failed before.   
^^^  
Bewildered, Mieke followed Suki out of school at the end of the day, still none the wiser. She hadn't told her. She couldn't believe it. As far as she was concerned she had failed miserably at extracting a piece of potentially juicy gossip from her friend.  
Suki looked out of the gates, and to her delight, there Wufei was, waiting for her to leave school.  
When they were almost there, she turned to Mieke and started to say,  
"Mieke, this is my-" but was cut off as Wufei grabbed her playfully from behind, making her squeal with delight, and pulled her into a long kiss. Breaking away, Suki knew she was smiling like an idiot, but she didn't care.  
"Like I was saying, Mieke, this is Wufei."  
"Nice to meet you." Mieke shook his hand, carefully taking in all she could see about him. He had that glow, too- so much love that it threatened to break free and fill everything with happiness. Wufei took her hand but stayed silent, preferring to drink in everything about Suki. It had only been a day, and he'd missed her; her arms, her hair, her eyes, her body. He wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked along, Suki talking to her friend as they went. Mieke left, and Suki guided Wufei through the streets to her brother's school, unwrapping herself from his grip as she ran forward to greet her little brother.   
Mika looked over her shoulder and saw him standing there. That pilot. What was he doing here, with Suki? He bet he could hazard a guess, by the exuberant smiles on both their faces.  
The little boy disentangled himself and walked over, his cast dragging slightly, then looking up at the strange guy his sister liked so much.  
Wufei looked down into solemn eyes, and realised who it was. It was the same person as flicked yoghurt onto his hair the other day. Eyes twinkling, he crouched and greeted him, dropping not-so-subtle hints about pigeons to show he knew it had been Mika. Joining them, Suki entwined her fingers with Wufei's and they set off for her apartment, with Mika walking silently alongside her.  
^^^  
Mika could hear giggling and murmuring coming from the bathroom. Suki and Wufei had vanished, and when he went looking for them, this was what he found.  
"Suki?"  
The noises stopped, and moments later he heard the reply,  
"Yes, Mika?"  
"You alright? It's dinner time, and I'm not allowed to cook, and anyway I need the bathroom…-"  
"Sure, Mika. Give me a minute."  
Brief sounds of hurried movement from the other side of the door reached his ears, and the door opened to reveal a slightly messy Suki, flustered from making out with Wufei in the bathroom.  
Peering through the opening when she'd gone into the kitchen, Mika could see a kitana lying by the toilet. Eyes and grin widening in the joy of discovery, he turned quickly away, then hid in the bedroom as Wufei crept out silently, a nonchalant look on his face. Mika buried his head under the pillow and laughed until the tears rolled down his cheeks.  
^^^  
Having been put to bed unfairly early, Mika still wasn't asleep. Instead, he lay perfectly still, listening to the quiet sounds from outside. He heard light footsteps coming along the corridor, and listened to see whose they were.   
Suki was under attack from Wufei, laughing and pushing him away each time he tried to kiss her. By the door they finally stopped and he kissed her passionately, a long deep kiss that sent her skin shivering in delight. His hands crept to her waist, and she pulled them off firmly and gave him a mock stern look, trying not to giggle.  
"You've got to go."  
He tried to hold her close once more but she dodged, grinning. "In case you've conveniently forgotten, my little brother is in the house."  
"That didn't stop you in the bathroom," he replied, grinning.  
She didn't answer that, because he kissed her slowly again, as she opened the door with one hand. "I'll see you tomorrow."  
Unwillingly, the pilot walked out slowly, gazing back at the beautiful Suki holding the door serenely.  
Giggling quietly to herself, Suki walked into the bedroom and undressed slowly, by herself for the first time since Friday, climbing into bed and lying down peacefully. Watching through almost-closed eyes, Mika saw her pull a piece of blue cloth from under her pillow, breathe in deeply and sigh, then tuck it back carefully, her hand resting on it under the pillow.  
Suki sighed blissfully. It was one of Wufei's shirts, and it smelt of his musky scent. She liked it. A lot. She knew Mika was watching, but she didn't care. Closing her eyes, one hand on Wufei's shirt, she drifted happily to sleep.  
^^^  
They carried on like this for a week, until the next Friday. Suki had finally persuaded Wufei to come with her and her friends to that fateful club, leaving Mika at someone else's house again. She brushed some smooth powder onto her face. She sneezed as she over did it- Wufei had come up behind her and wrapped his strong arms around her injured stomach, making her gasp in pain. The bruises still weren't healed, and she found the agony hard to deal with.  
Concerned, Wufei looked at her face and realised what he'd done. He apologised and, shifting his arms to a more comfortable spot, he began to kiss her soft neck persuasively.  
"Stop it! I've got to get ready!" she told him sternly, trying hard not to give in to his demands. "Go change."  
Caressing her once more, he grabbed his crumpled clothes and began to struggle quickly into them, trying not to take his eyes off of the girl in front of the mirror. She stood up and watched, giggling as his shirt got stuck with his head in one of the armholes. Soon they were both in hysterics, but at last she took pity on him and guided it over his head until he had it on correctly.   
Smiling invitingly, she pulled on her black shoes and they left the apartment, locking the door behind them. With his arm loosely around her waist, so as not to chafe her bruises, they walked through the back streets, taking a shortcut. It wasn't likely that Zedd and his gang would dare attack them again, not after the beating they had received last time. Hips swaying gently as she moved, Suki led Wufei through the alleyways to the club, where they met up with Mieke and Co.   
"Hey, Mieke!" Suki called loudly, shouting above the rhythmic din.   
"Hi!" her friend yelled back, straining on her toes to see her above the crowd. "Glad you could make it!"  
Once inside, Wufei grabbed her playfully and pulled her to dance, his eyes taking in the surrounding area in detail. He may be a retired gundam pilot, but it was still better to be wary. Loads of guys were staring at his beautiful Suki, in a way Wufei didn't care for. He was highly possessive of her, and treated her like a delicate glass figurine, easily breakable. He wrapped his arms around her hips and pulled her close, with her head on his muscular shoulder. Plenty of interested guys still watched, but many looked away, seeing that she was his. The Chinese pilot smiled, both at the simplicity of his defence and at his fortune that he could claim to own such beauty.  
Suki could tell easily why he'd done that, and grinned to herself. He was so obsessive about making sure she was his, though he needn't have bothered. She didn't really look at other guys now, not needing to. She was safe and loved with Wufei, and for the first time in her life, she was content.  
Wufei's roving eyes caught a familiar but unexpected figure leaning against the wall, unruly hair still out of control. Heero. And what's more, he had caught his eye and was beckoning to him.  
Abruptly letting go of Suki, who looked up in surprise, he told her to stay right where she was and walked slowly through the multitudes to talk to his old friend.  
"Heero."  
"Wufei."  
"What on earth are you doing here?"  
"The Preventors need you again."  
Jet eyes widening in comprehension, Wufei glanced back at the glorious, graceful Suki, still moving in perfect time with the music, talking to Mieke. His Suki. Heero followed his longing gaze, and grunted briefly in surprise. This had been one eventuality the Preventors hadn't foreseen.  
"Now?" Heero's attention came back to Wufei's face, which now appeared to be calm. But something in his eyes betrayed him- a deep reluctance to return.  
"Yes. We think someone's manufacturing mobile suits again."  
It was said quietly, but some heads still turned amidst the noise to look briefly at them, then dismissed his words as a misheard comment.  
Torn deeply, Wufei didn't know what to do. He couldn't leave Suki. All his life he had been in a dark place, inside and out. Killing and helping to kill many people. "How many?" he wondered glumly. But he had finally found his light, and he was needed to leave it to venture into the void once more.  
"How reliable is the source?"  
"As reliable as they come."  
~ Damn. ~ "How long do I have?"  
"We want you to leave tomorrow, or Sunday at latest."  
"Where for?"  
"L4."  
Wufei was suddenly and unreasonably angry. Angry at his messed-up life that wouldn't let him have a little happiness. Angry at the Preventors who wouldn't let him rest. All he wanted was a normal life, but he knew he would never lead one. All that mattered to him now was Suki.  
"Can I bring her with me?"  
Heero knew whom he meant. He'd felt that way himself before, leaving Relena. The pain flickered briefly in his eyes at the memory.   
"You'll have to ask Head Office. It doesn't concern me. Goodbye, Wufei."  
Horribly confused and dismayed, Wufei made his slow way back over to Suki, pushing through the dancing crowd and held her close to his heartbeat, seeming to be simply dancing with her head on his shoulder. In reality he was rapidly whispering into her ear those parts of his problem she was allowed to know.   
"Will you come?" he asked quietly, desperate for a yes but dreading a no.  
She looked up at him with her big eyes and smiled slightly in her lopsided way. "Is the Pope a Catholic?"  
Letting a long breath out with relief, he kissed her passionately, almost making her swoon once more, onto the dance floor. But it wasn't definite yet, nothing was. There was still the looming possibility that she still might not be allowed to go with him. And, of course, Mika would have to come too.   
^^^  
"Chang Wufei calling Head Office."  
It was the next day, and it had taken all Wufei had to leave the slumbering Suki lying there tangled in the sheets while he rose to call Head Office. He was sat dozily in an elderly armchair.  
"Wufei. It's nice to hear from you."  
"Hello, Sally."  
The video image showed Sally Po a flushed, sleep-deprived Wufei, and from Heero's report she could guess why that was. She stifled a smile.   
"I need to bring two people along with me on this mission."  
"Who?" she replied innocently, pretending she couldn't guess. At least one would be the girl. But she had no idea of the other.  
"My…friend, Suki, and her little brother."  
"Well…" Major Po sat in silence and thought for a moment, then turned her eyes back to the screen. "They can come." Wufei's face lit up. "However, there is one condition."  
"What?" Wufei was ecstatic now- it seemed Suki could come after all.  
"She has to take part in the mission."  
Wufei's happy expression melted, eyes widening in shock. But she was so weak…how could he let her do something like that? She'd get hurt or something worse…  
"Is that the only way I'll be allowed?" he asked glumly.  
"Yes, Wufei. We can't take boarders. They'll have to work for their keep. We expect to see you at latest by tomorrow night. Goodbye Wufei."  
The screen flickered off, and he slumped back in the chair, disbelieving. He had to endanger her to take her with him? He couldn't believe it. This was getting more complicated by the minute.  
A pair of lithe arms wrapped themselves around his chest, and he turned his head to see Suki, wearing nothing but the sheet from their bed, chin resting on his shoulder and smiling. He reached for her and pulled her into his lap, kissing her sore reddened lips hard once more.  
"So?" she asked breathlessly, when she finally pulled away.  
"I won't let you go."  
Suki's face deepened a shade, and tears threatened to come. "Why not?" she half whined.  
"They want you to take part in the mission." He replied grimly  
She laughed. "Is that all?"  
He looked at her seriously and the laughter froze into a lump in her throat.   
"You could get hurt." He said softly.  
She worked it out. It clicked. "It's because you think I'm weak, isn't it?"  
"I just don't want you to get hurt." He insisted  
"I'm not weak!" she cried, standing abruptly, clasping the sheet with clenched fists around her trembling torso. "Just because I'm female doesn't mean I'm weak!" The tears were streaming down her reddened face now, and he tried to embrace her, to try to comfort her, but she pulled away, fighting him off with desperately thrashing arms. She had thought he wasn't sexist any more! Then she ran off into the small bathroom with her spare hand over her streaming eyes to have a good cry by herself, slamming and locking the door behind her.  
^^^  
She couldn't get out to change without him catching her. She didn't want to have to face him in just an old sheet. Peering around through tear blurred lashes, she looked for something, anything decent, she could use. Finally she gave up and decided to have a shower. Maybe it would calm her, and help her to think more reasonably. The room was dark, with no windows. She pulled a waterproof lamp inside the closed curtain, twisting the hot water on, and drawing her breath in sharply at the unaccustomed heat.   
When he heard the shower rumble into life, Wufei walked to the door and used his pocket knife to easily lift the tumblers in the lock. She'd forgotten that he was a pilot- otherwise she wouldn't have even bothered. The thought didn't enter his mind that she might have used it to emphasise her desire for solitude. In the darkness he could see her slender silhouette, dark against the lit-up curtain, hair cascading down her shoulders like a midnight waterfall. She was occupied with scrubbing herself thoroughly, as if to get rid of any of his loathsome scent remaining. She obviously didn't know she was there.   
"Suki." He said loudly to reach her ears over the noise of the shower. Maybe a little too loudly. She jumped in surprise, and her wet bare foot slipped on the smooth surface of the bath, leaving her to fall, grasping at thin air, crashing towards the edge of the bath.   
Wufei sprang, pulled aside the curtain and grabbed her in one movement, just before her outstretched neck, propelled by the full weight of her body collided with the hard, cracked porcelain. She grabbed his strong hand like a lifeline to a drowning man and began to weep uncontrollably, eyes streaming from the nearness of her possible death.  
He hugged her close, not caring that he got sodden. Standing shakily, she uncertainly climbed from the bathtub, supporting herself on his shoulder, and fell into his arms, still trembling from the near accident.   
"Now do you see why I won't let you go?" he asked quietly, stroking the deep jet hair gently as she grabbed a towel to dry herself.  
"That's no reason, it was an accident," she said stubbornly, hair now wrapped in a turban. "You startled me. Anyway, what would I be expected to do in this mission of yours?"  
"I don't know," Wufei admitted remorsefully. "I forgot to ask."  
"Well then, I'm coming with you. I'll find out when we get there."  
He looked at her commandingly, but she stared straight back at him, not giving an inch. It occurred to Wufei that there was more than one type of strength- that of the body, and that of the mind. He was certain he had both. But what did Suki have?  
"Alright." He agreed reluctantly. "But if it's too dangerous, you're going back when I say."  
"Whatever." She smiled knowingly. She would fight that battle when she got to it. "As long as I stay with you, I don't care about the danger."  



	3. Chapter 3

He had laughed at her when they had left the Earth's atmosphere, as she sat, staring, astounded, out of the window at the gleaming azure and emerald behemoth below their ship.   
"But it's so beautiful from up here," she breathed, still gazing avidly at the planet she had been born to.  
"I forgot you hadn't seen it before," he remarked, leaning over her shoulder and pointing outside. "You can see the Great Barrier Reef from up here, too."  
Her nose pressed up against the thick perspex, she tore her eyes from the planet, to the stars, and the colonies. One seat in front, her solemn little brother contemplated their journey grimly. Suki had said it was a holiday that Wufei was paying for. How did he get the money? Trips to space were expensive, but he trusted his big sister to tell him the truth. But still, little whispers of doubt gnawed at his belief in his elder sibling.  
"The stars are so much closer up here," Mika told Wufei, taking in the amazing beauty all around.  
"I don't really notice so much."  
Suki turned and stared at Wufei, unable to comprehend his being indifferent to the scenery.  
"I was born out here, so I'm used to it."  
"But still…" she watched the Earth drift out of her vision as the craft turned, and then looked at the moon, just coming into sight.  
"The moon looks like a graveyard from so close," Mika commented, glancing back at the two teenagers behind him.  
"It is, kind of- plenty of soldiers died in the war at the Lunar Base."  
Holding Suki close, he sighed deeply. He and the other pilots had had the same thought about the Earth when they had first arrived, and Suki still didn't quite realise it, even when it was pointed out to her. The rolling grasslands, the perspiring jungles, the sun-cooked deserts, the sky, even…all of it was so natural, unlike the man-made colonies. That was put there by humans, and it was missing something. Something important. It wasn't so organic. So…alive.  
"Look, we're docking," Suki told him excitedly, like a small child, taking him from his thoughts to look out of the round window. Indeed, they had arrived. He picked up his bag and they left the ship, with Suki still exclaiming about how strange and fascinating it all was, while he looked on carelessly.  
^^^  
Sally Po was waiting for them inside the spaceport, and walked forward to meet them. Smiling warmly at Suki and Mika, she pulled Wufei aside to talk to him, leaving the Chinese girl to amuse her younger brother for a moment.  
"It's nice to see you again, Wufei." she said briskly. "You're staying with Quatre, in the Winner Mansion. He's taking part in the mission as well. Come on."  
Walking back outside, rejoining Suki and Mika, they climbed into the car Sally had waiting outside and drove away with a smooth rush. Almost immediately Mika began talking animatedly about the Earth to the curious driver, who had never left space himself.  
"Wufei, where are we staying?" the small boy asked, turning to see his sister held close to by the pilot's muscular form. He didn't mind, really, but it was nice when she actually paid him some attention for a change.  
"With a friend of mine. Quatre Raberba Winner."  
The little boy's eyes widened dramatically and his mouth stretched into an unbelieving grin. Another pilot! Cool!  
Pulling up outside a large house, they climbed from the car, taking the luggage from the boot. The driver tried to take it, but was happy enough to let them carry their own in the end.  
Quatre came to meet them, greeting Wufei happily and welcoming Suki and Mika warmly into his companionship. Any friend of Wufei's was a friend of his.   
The blonde pilot took them to a sitting room, where he poured some tea and chatted aimlessly for a few minutes. Mika sat fidgeting for a while, but soon left to explore, having been warned to try not to break anything by Suki, and wandered off happily, meandering through the expansive rooms, wondering what a gundam pilot would have in his house.  
"How much do you know about the mission?" Quatre asked Suki once they were sure Mika was out of earshot.  
"Only that I'm taking part. I don't know what I'm meant to be doing."  
"The front for the main recruitment operation is a Media School. They teach singing, dancing, modelling, acting and so on. We want you to go in as a student. Can you sing?"  
Suki smiled, and launched into a wonderful heart rending version of 'My Heart Will Go On' in her light soprano voice. Her singing lessons had finally paid off. She stopped after the chorus, and grinned. "That answer your question?"   
Grinning back, Quatre replied, "That'll do great. We were worried in case you didn't fit the bill. Guess you do."  
"Good. When do I start?"  
"Tomorrow's Monday, and we'll have you enrolled by tonight."  
"And what am I supposed to do there?"  
"Alright." Quatre stood up, and began to pace. "Hint at being interested in war. For your entry test, do something based on a battle. See if any advances are made towards you as to joining a rebel group. Try and find any information on mobile suits, and keep an eye open for soldiers. Pretty basic."  
Suki gulped. It was a lot to take in. She stood and reeled off a mock salute, smiling lopsidedly. "Yessir!"  
Wufei looked despairingly at Quatre and they shared a moment of amused masculine companionship.  
"Ok," continued Quatre. "You'll have to learn a few things first…."  
^^^  
She woke early the next morning, and looked up at Wufei, still slumbering peacefully. Smiling, she moved his resting arms from around her and got up to have a quick hot shower with the power shower she had been dying to try. Towel drying her freshened hair, she pulled on the clothes she'd been given. Typical artistic stuff. A well-worn lilac sweater, some frayed hippie jeans and a loose beret. There were minuscule spy cameras hidden in the weave of her jumper and in her bag. She'd also been given some wide rimmed glasses with nil-strength lenses, and a camera in the hinge, so the watchers could see everything she saw. Small microphones with each camera completed her innocent array.  
Adjusting her beret, she sloped downstairs and grabbed some slightly overdone toast on the way out. Wufei would be annoyed that she'd left without telling him, but Suki decided that she'd prefer to get there on time, preferring not to wait for him to wake up than face the dragon's wrath.  
She caught the early train to school, as she had been instructed, and got off, staring at the large white building. They could easily hide mobile suits in the area it covered. Sloppily dressed girls and guys traversed the lawns, and she could see that her outfit blended right in. The "Indifferent to the luxuries of life and absorbed in art and or poetry" look was abundant. Suki went to the front door and entered slowly, absorbing her surroundings.  
^^^  
"Miss Suki Chang to see the headmaster."  
They'd changed her surname to make it harder to track her, and Quatre had entered Chang with a grin. Suki didn't mind much. At least they hadn't said she was married.  
"You're the new student? Go right in."  
The headmaster was a tall, gaunt man, with a wild cloud of white hair that appeared never to have seen a brush in the whole of it's long, wind swept life. He frowned as she came in, looking her over, then motioned for her to sit down.  
"Miss Chang, I presume?"  
"Yes, sir." she replied politely  
"We just need to clear which lessons you'll be taking. Do you sing?"  
"Yes, sir."  
"Which grade?"  
"Grade 5."  
Suki tried not to grin. That part was true, at least. She'd given up singing when she could no longer afford the lessons, but not before she'd got to her fifth grade.  
"What else do you do?"  
"I paint and act."  
"Very well. Do you have a soliloquy prepared?"  
"Yes sir. It's taken from 'The Glory of War'."  
Suki stood up, and read with a clear voice. "The magnificent armies, shining red as the blood they had spilled, each collapsed upon the other in a mighty crash as of thunder. The battle was a dance, a dance of death, which could only compare to a storm of massive proportions." She continued, listing the glories of battle in a voice that sent shivers down Quatre's spine as they listened through the microphones. The headmaster seemed impressed. All was going to plan.  
"May I see some of your artwork?" he asked when she sat again.   
"Certainly." She handed him a sketchbook. In it were several pencil drawings of the gundams in battle, light streaming around them. These she'd done herself as well, from photographs taken at the time. It had been a project at High School last year.  
"These are good, Miss Chang. Here is your timetable. You may go. Don't hesitate to tell me if you find anything too far below you."  
Suki walked out, and breathed an inner sigh of relief. She seemed to have passed for now. Indeed, he seemed quite impressed. Looking at the timetable, she made her way to her first lesson. Literature studies. Here goes…  
^^^  
When the first tiring day was finished, Suki made her way up to her dorm room, no. 370. It was too dangerous to go back to the Winner house, in case she was tracked. So she sat at the dresser and began to write things down on a piece of paper, things the Preventors might have missed on the recordings. Tilting the glasses towards the paper, she made the writing big enough to be seen.  
"What's she doing?" Wufei asked, looking over Quatre's shoulder at the screen.  
"She's writing down information so we can get it! Genius!" Winner cried, whilst having someone note down what she'd written.  
-Headmaster v. impressed by war drawings. Seems to like war.  
-History lesson- based on wars.  
-Electronics (where had to take off glasses) using circuit boards for high energy. Beam sabres?  
-All boys v. athletic. All girls smart, most athletic.  
-Art teacher spent most time with people doing war drawings.  
-Miss you. Good luck.  
There Suki finished, gave them a few seconds, and tore the notepaper into shreds, before throwing it onto the traditional open fire. Hearing footsteps coming down the hall, she began to half-sing quietly to herself, trying to keep up her act as an artistic person. 'Dum dum, my heart will go on…near, far, hmmm', Her paper pad and pencil were suddenly used to draw a doodle of the first thing that came to mind as a teacher stuck her head in, looked at Suki and left. Highly suspicious. Suki looked down at the sketch of Wufei she had begun. Smiling to herself and re-directing her glasses she finished the head and shoulders of the pilot and thumb tacked it to the wall next to her bed.   
When it came to curfew, Suki took off the glasses, held them in front of her and waved goodnight, then pulled off the sweater and dumped them both in a drawer so they couldn't watch her change. She went to sleep gazing at her picture of Wufei.  
^^^  
Mika wondered to himself where Suki had gone. She'd vanished somewhere, and they wouldn't tell him where she had gone. This was no holiday, that was for sure. Something odd was going on.  
^^^  
The next day, Suki pulled her jumper back over her head and put on the glasses, tapping them twice as a signal that she was on the move, and headed to the dining room for breakfast. It was all high-energy food.   
"Hmm."  
Sitting down, she was immediately the focus of the group of people on her table, who animatedly began to ask her questions.  
"Hi. I'm Mike; this is Tom, Sophie, Anna and Chris."  
"Suki Chang. Nice to meet you all." She said briefly before attacking her meal, hoping they wouldn't ask her difficult questions.  
"So, where you from?" Chris asked quickly, grinning. Suki didn't like the kind of attention he was giving her.  
"L2, originally. Then I went to art school, but got transferred here." she reeled off the story she had been given about her past.  
Sophie beamed happily. "I'm from L2! Do you know so and so…" and it continued, Suki bluffing wildly, trying to keep her story fresh in her mind. It turned out she had double art first with Anna, the quiet one. Smiling thankfully, she got up to turn in her tray and retreated to the relative safety of her dorm.  
^^^  
Art was in the advanced IT labs today, using a complicated computer package. Suki chose the powerful little laptop in the corner, where no one could see what she was doing. Using basic hacking skills learned from the pilots, (and from an old friend from primary school had they known it) she hacked into the computer's C drive and located and unlocked a suspicious looking file. She encountered a shock when a timed identification code was triggered, but she managed to twist her way past that and finally had access to her target file. It was named 'Operation MS.' ~ Bingo. ~ Anything so well locked had to be confidential and potentially useful.  
Rapidly copying it and sending the file to the Preventors, she closed the hacked files, putting a scrambler on it so no one could tell who had done it, or even that it had happened at all. She turned back to the art program, and quickly brought up and re-saved a prepared picture she had done in her spare time, which was just completed enough to look as though it had been started today. She smiled, satisfied, to herself. And Wufei had been worried that she was in danger.  
^^^  
At lunch, Suki's eyes were drawn to a strange, shifty looking stranger in oddly smart, formal clothes in a hall of sloppy sweaters and jeans. He was surveying the chatting teenagers with attentive dark eyes. She looked at him long enough for the camera in her glasses to get a good view. He looked unusual, and therefore suspect. She reluctantly turned her attention back to her lunch, with her jumper-cam leaning carefully towards him. Even more over-sweet high-energy food. Great. She'd heard that it was gym today, and Mike had groaned, complaining that gym was more like army boot camp. That slip had drawn her attention, Why was Mike familiar with army boot camps? She hoped the Preventors had heard his comment. She'd seen the playing field- more like a military training obstacle course. Definitely more than a bit suspicious. She turned to her new 'friends' and smiled slightly uneasily. She hoped they wouldn't notice.   
"Who's that?" she asked Chris, about a muscular man in a tracksuit sitting across the hall.  
"It's Mr Summers, the gym teacher. He's always really interested in the athletic kids. He has his definite favourites."  
Trying not to frown, she asked another question. "What's this obsession with turning us all into superheroes?"  
"I dunno. Maybe they want to use us as guinea pigs." There was a carefully blank look on Chris' face- Suki realised that he must know something. She wondered how she could winkle it out of him without getting too close. She only had eyes for Wufei, and she didn't want to get into a compromising situation. Maybe she could get Chris drunk or somehow get him to trust her…  
"Well, you already looks like a guinea pig," she joked to cover her mood, getting a mock scowl from the grinning blonde suspect.   
Lunch was over with the harsh sound of the bell, and it was off to singing lessons before 'boot camp'.  
^^^  
The PE kit was terrible. Uniform grey? It made them all look like zombies. Tracksuits or shorts, with a vest or T-shirt. Looking at the pools of thick mud strewn across the field, Suki had opted for the lighter version. The athletic Mr Summers sauntered in, and scowled at them all, looking them up and down.   
"Right, girls. We're here to get you all fit. No mucking about. I want to see you get warmed up as quick as you can, and then onto the course." He hit one fist into the palm of his hand. "Discipline and hard work!" he roared. The mixed class groaned.  
"Mr Summers?" Suki raised a reluctant hand. "If we're going to be actors, why do we have to be fit?"  
He turned an intimidating icy glare her way. Her question had caught him off balance for a second. He groped momentarily for an answer. "Because you're young and you should be as agile and strong as possible!" he barked.  
Suki flinched, and started to warm up with the others, copying their stretches. Maybe she wasn't so safe after all.  
^^^  
The file she'd sent the pilots was interesting. Very interesting. Full of encoded documents. They'd sent it on to Heero- he was still the best at hacking. But even after his best efforts it didn't appear to reveal any names.  
"I think I've got something." A monotone voice rang out, and Sally went to see what he'd discovered.  
"The new Capricorn models. Fitted with a crude form of the Zero system."  
Deeply drawing in her breath, Sally exhaled quickly. "That'll be hard to combat."  
"Without the Gundams, certainly." Pilot 01 turned to look at her. "We have to stop them before their plans are complete!"  
^^^  
Getting Chris drunk hadn't been too hard. Everyone else was busy, and she'd begged him to be her drinking partner, flirting outrageously, professing a deep hate of drinking alone. And he'd finally accepted. She had spent most of the evening buying him and herself drinks. Now, he was sitting woozily at the bar, compliant and drowsy, with a big grin plastered over his face.  
"Hey Chris," Suki said with a slight slur. She'd had to have a few herself, to coax him into drinking. Maybe too many, as it was worrying her slightly under a haze of alcohol that there appeared to be two of him. She remembered her task. "Why 'dya reckon they're trying to turn us all into some sorta superheroes?" she asked, hiccuping quietly.  
"For the 'suits, stupid," Chris managed, trying to get her into focus, letting out a huge belch. "We can't fly without bein' fit."  
~ Got him. ~ "Which suits?"  
"The mobile ones, o'course," he replied, still not realising the importance of the information he was throwing away. He giggled.  
"Will I get to fly one?" she was giggling too.  
A sobering hand fell heavily on her shoulder, and Suki turned to find Mr. Summers standing behind her. Innocently, she turned a surprised gaze on him, questioning him silently. She couldn't quite get him into focus. How odd. She hiccuped again.  
"What do you think you are doing, Christopher? Get back to your dorm."   
The drunken blonde stood unsteadily, one hand on the bar stool. He swallowed uneasily, he wasn't feeling too hot, and left shakily, still drunk and more than a bit queasy. He ran the last few steps, reaching uncontrollably.  
"So, Suki. Looks like you've learned more than you'd bargained for."  
She didn't care for his smile. She wished she hadn't drunk so much.  
She tried to look convincing. It was hard. "Yes sir. I was only wondering why-"   
"Enough. We've been watching you, Chang, and we've decided you'll be perfect for our cause. Join us."  
"Yes sir!" she put a shine into her eyes, an ardour for the war he was offering. "What are we fighting for?" she asked a little to quickly. She continued to cover it up. "Not that it matters. I love to fight."  
"For freedom from the ESA's tyrannical rule. That good enough?"  
"Yes sir! When do I start?" She didn't have to fake her enthusiasm.  
"At lunch tomorrow, Chris will show you. At ease, soldier. Go home." The stiff 'teacher' walked off, and Suki breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, I hope you got that guys," she whispered into her sweater fabric. "You'd better have." She hiccuped again and walked a little unsteadily up to her dorm.  



	4. Chapter 4

"Got them!" Quatre looked up at Wufei, an expression of joy on his open face. "She got them to admit to it, on camera and cassette."  
"How's she stand?"  
"She's now a 'member' of their organisation. She said when she went to bed that she was going to try and delve deeper. She's doing better than we had hoped!"  
Eyes widening, dampening the blonde pilot's high spirits, Wufei dug his shocked fingers into Quatre's arm. "I'm going in." he gulped, fighting his horror at his girlfriend joining an enemy organisation as a spy.  
"What?"  
"I can't let Suki do that by herself!"   
"I think she's doing fine. And what if they recognise you?"  
"So what? Suki's in danger. It doesn't matter about me." He turned and called to Heero.  
"Enrol me. I start tomorrow."  
"But..." began Quatre.  
He gave up. His persuasions were useless against the need Wufei felt to protect Suki.  
^^^  
Suki held her head, willing the throbbing to stop as she stared listlessly at the algebra problems in the book in front of her. Never again would she get so drunk!  
"Suki, the headmaster wants to see you." An older pupil held the door open for her.  
Among the jibes and sympathetic looks of her classmates, Suki scooped her books into her bag and left the classroom, wondering what she'd done wrong. She couldn't think of anything that she had done to make them angry or suspicious, so maybe it was to do with her new 'membership'.  
"Come in, Suki," the chilling voice called as she walked into the outer office. She entered the room, and tried not to gasp. Wufei was there, larger than life, in a sloppy jumper and black jeans sitting in front of the principal. Her hangover was forgotten.  
"Your brother Mika has just enrolled. I thought you might want to know. You're sharing a dorm room, and his bed will be in there by tonight."  
She sat down, desperate not to grin. She might have known that Wufei or one of the others would come when things got a bit rougher. Then her emotions swung the other way, and she found herself fighting not to frown instead. He still thought she was weak!  
"I hope I did not interrupt your lessons too badly, Miss Chang. Please, return straight away. Mika will be in your next few lessons also."  
She stood, thanked him for informing her, and practically marched out, her emotions fighting for dominance inside her head. Wufei followed her. When they were outside, Wufei hugged her, as a brother would. They couldn't risk him ruining his cover.  
"What are you doing here?" Suki asked, when he released her.   
"I came to help you." He could see the wrath building in her eyes.   
"I'm not weak as you think, you know. I've managed to get this far by myself." She told him as they walked down the hallway, back to the lesson.  
"Did I say you were?"  
"Then why are you here?!" she exclaimed, stopping dead. "You don't think I can look after myself?"  
He remained silent, not answering her question. Not able to think of an answer that wouldn't infuriate her further. She led him back to the classroom, where they sat down in stony silence and got on with the work.  
^^^  
Her new friends were very interested in her 'brother', being immediately friendly and welcoming. Wufei couldn't help wondering if it was an enemy trap to catch him out. Suki noticed, and mouthed 'paranoid' over the other's heads, when nobody was looking. He rolled his eyes and she grinned, then turned to talk to Anna, who was asking some questions for the acting lesson later. She'd lost her script, and she wanted to photocopy Suki's.   
"So, are you an older or younger brother?"  
Wufei turned to see Mike, waiting for an answer. Groaning inwardly, he complied.  
"Older. I'm 18, she's 17."  
"Mike and Mika!" Chris declared, the first thing he had said so far, still slightly under the weather from last night. "We'll have to call you the Miks!"  
Chris stood abruptly, and grabbed Suki's arm to steady himself until the swirling in his head had passed. Wufei began to stand, an envious look in his eyes but sat again when Suki waved her hand at him and glared.  
"We've gotta go see Mrs. Goring, Suki," Chris told her, and she pretended to play along. "Sure. How long a detention do you think she'll give us for being drunk last night?"  
"I dunno. Depends if she's got a hangover or not." They sniggered, and walked off together, Wufei looking after them with a slight frown.  
"Guess you didn't know she got drunk last night, didja," Sophie asked brightly, running her fingers through her shiny hair. Wufei restrained a groan. She was coming onto him. Great.  
"No. She doesn't normally," he replied, trying to remain civil. He needed an escape route. "Mike, could you show me where our dorm is? I need to unpack, and now is as good a time as any."  
"Sure, Mika," the reply came, and he was led down a series of corridors away from the main part of the school 'till they reached the dorm. Having opened the door, he recognised the room from Suki's recordings. The fireplace, desk and window were all as he'd seen them on the screen.  
Mike had left, closing the door behind him. Abruptly, Wufei started to have a thorough inspection of the room for any hidden cameras. He couldn't find any, thank god, and the scanner didn't either. So it was clear. Sighing a deep breath of relief, he began to unpack his stuff onto his bed. It wasn't like he was going to use it for very long.  
^^^  
Following Chris, Suki walked deeper and deeper beneath the school. Her first assumption upon seeing the school had been right- there was enough space down here to store plenty of mobile suits. She'd even seen them, on the way down. The massive humanoid machines had seemed to stare down at her with lifeless gleaming eyes, accusing her of spying. Which was true enough.  
"Miss Chang." The headmaster emerged from a side room, carrying a manila folder. She looked more carefully and saw her name on it. It contained all of her previous records, carefully forged. All the schools she'd supposedly attended had her on their records, so checking up wouldn't be a problem.  
"This is our base. Here you will learn to pilot your suit. In secret, of course. You may not mention this to anyone, even your brother."  
"Sir?" the tall man turned to look at her, and she swallowed uneasily before continuing. "My brother would be more than happy to join. Sir. That is, um, he likes war as well, sir." she wiped the sweat off that was collecting under her hairline. She would have to be more careful in what she said! He gave her a look.  
"Tom will sound him out. Now, this portfolio is full of the information you will need to know. Can you safely conceal it?"  
"Yes sir."  
"Then take it. I suggest you read it now, before you return to lessons. You are dismissed."  
She watched him walk away, then proceeded to sit at a smooth metallic table and scan the paper carefully with the specially engineered glasses pointed directly at it.  
OPERATION MS- MILITARY SHOWDOWN  
PRIVATE SUKI CHANG  
CAPRICORN SUIT 145  
TO BE INCLUDED IN RIGHT WING OF ATTACK FORCE, 18TH JULY.  
And so it continued, with Suki reading in growing disbelief. They had every angle she could think of covered- and with no Gundams, it would be near impossible to stop them if the operation went ahead. But she had the beginnings of a plan…  
^^^  
Wufei grabbed her as she entered the dorm room, curtains fastened securely and closing the door quickly behind her. Before she could say anything he pulled her into a long fiery kiss, shuddering with need. He had missed her so, so horribly.  
She fought for breath as he pulled away, knowing that she grinned like an idiot. She mentally tried to pull away as well, to tell him what she'd learnt, but her hands twined themselves around his back by themselves, pulling his powerful body closer to her.  
~ Traitors… ~ she thought, but soon forgot it as he pulled her into an even deeper kiss. Summoning her will power, she pulled away and began reluctantly "Wufei, I need to-" but was cut off. He was overwhelmed by his trembling body's fervent, fierce demands and pressed her slowly down onto his small bed.  
^^^  
Suki shuddered deliciously at her memories of the night. It had been almost like the first, but fiercer, more passionate… She had wanted him, so much…and now finally her need was satiated. She looked up. He was still asleep, still holding her close. He murmured quietly with his dreams, arms tightening and relaxing periodically.  
"Wufei?" she whispered, nudging him gently. He awoke with a start, and looked up at her.   
"Wha? Wherami?"  
She laughed briefly at his half-asleep response, then sobered up and explained what had happened in the underground chambers of the 'school'.  
"Were you wearing the glasses?"  
"Of course. You saw me leave in them."  
"Good. Then the guys will arrive soon, or we'll get instructions."  
"No, we won't." He looked at her, surprised. "Don't you remember? Sally Po told us. We're on our own, all through this mission. They trust you to complete it." She stifled a small wave of humiliation. They'd sent him in to deal with it. They didn't trust her. He'd probably told them she was weak. She felt cooler towards him.  
"Fine then. When I think of a plan, I'll tell you." He rolled over, yawning.  
"Well, I kinda had one of my own…"  
But Wufei wasn't listening. He had already gone back to sleep. With a snort of disdain, Suki got up and went to sleep in the other bed. He didn't even wake up.  
^^^  
When he finally awoke with the bell, the first thing he noticed was that he was alone. Suki had gotten up and slept the night in the other bed. It was cold, by himself. He'd got so used to her that it felt strange to be apart.  
"Suki?"  
She came out of the bathroom, fully dressed and ready for 'school'. Pulling the glasses from the drawer, she put them on and winked, then left him lying there.  
"What did I do?"  
^^^  
Smiling grimly, she paced down the school corridors to her first lesson. She considered her plan…She had to be sure that everyone would be able to hear the fire bell when it went off.  
"Mrs Hutchings?"   
"Yes, Suki?"  
"May I go to the bathroom?"  
Five minutes later, she was in position by the nearest fire bell to the hidden entrance to the underground. This served a double purpose- she could get down there quickly and the soldiers down there would be able to hear it clearly. Pulling off her shoe, she smashed the glass.  
A loud screech ripped through the air, making everyone jump in fright, as they grabbed their bags and left the building. For some reason, it was school policy to take bags out during fire drills. Nobody knew why, although Suki felt she could hazard guess… unguarded bags posed a security risk. As the wail spread throughout the building, Suki hid in a small cramped cupboard, listening to the rushing feet outside. She needn't have worried about everyone being able to hear it, the bell activated the entire system, and soon no one could hear themselves think. Her plan was working!  
^^^  
Standing outside with the rest of his homeroom class, Wufei looked around for Suki. Where was she? She wasn't here, and she was definitely in his homeroom. Trying to push past teachers, he was restrained, unable to use his martial arts for fear of discovery. Reluctantly, he sat, thinking about Suki and hoping it was just a drill.  
^^^  
Suki raced down the long, silent corridors of the underground base. All the soldiers had left, and there was no one to stop her. She ran to the mobile suit storage facility, and climbed in to a giant bulky figure, using the knowledge from the folder she'd been given. She'd read enough to know how to use the main beam cannon. Smiling, she set the beam timer. She had very little time. Leaping out of the suit, she began a desperate race for her life. She threw herself aboard a small transport cart, jamming her foot onto the accelerator. She sped up a long passage, seeing daylight ahead: the soldiers had evacuated the base through a giant set of doors up a gradual slope. Bits of mangled turf were on the floor, it had obviously been camouflaged to look like part of the field. She heard rumbling behind her as she shot up the ramp, leaping into the sunlight. She could smell singed hair, and intense heat licked at her back. She jumped off the transport before it hit the ground and ran towards the assembly point, her mind sparking with exhilaration. She had done it, and survived! Grinning, she stooped to pick up an abandoned camouflage hat.  
^^^  
Everyone was shocked still as their faces were bathed in orange. Pupils and teachers alike threw themselves to the ground. The school had suddenly and without warning gone up in a massive fireball, evaporating moments before it hit the colony roof. "SUKIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Wufei screamed. He could feel the terrible force of the blast on his face. "SUKI!" bits of jetsam fell down from the sky. Wufei was horrified to see Suki's solitary schoolbag land a little way away. SUKI! He screamed again, and, for the first time in a very long while, tears of horror and shock began to roll hotly down his face as shudders racked his body.  
But then, incredibly, small shadow appeared, silhouetted against the amber glare of the fire. Singed hair swung gently at its sides as it walked towards them. A military cap, set at a jaunty angle. A familiar grin. The astounded faces of the pupils stared at her, uncomprehending, shocked. Wufei's unashamed reddened face among them, but his shone with joy.  
"Suki!" he yelled. Wufei half ran half stumbled forward and grabbed her tightly, shaking her viciously. "What the hell did you do, are you crazy!?" he babbled.  
"I used a Capricorn's main beam cannon to blow up the school," she replied nonchalantly, pulling off her blackened cap and setting it on his astounded countenance playfully.  
"You did WHAT?" he stood stock still.  
Suki smirked. She couldn't help it. Finally she could prove to him what she had insisted all along. "Guess I'm not so weak after all, huh?"  
The End  



End file.
